The Perfect Blend of Modernization and Traditional City
Posted on April 12, 2022 by chikucadmin in Taxi ServiceTable of Content
Introduction
Top Places to Visit in Chennai
Conclusion
Introduction
Regarded as the cleanest and green in India, Chennai is a gateway to a lot of South Indian cultures. Being one of the four metropolitan cities of India, and the capital of Tamil Nadu, Chennai is vastly populated. Still, the beauty of Chennai is intact. With huge spread green lands and architectural marvels, Chennai retains a rank among the top tourist cities in India. Formerly known as Madras, Chennai is the best place to go to if you are the history lover type, wherein you will find a lot to explore in regards to temples and museums. Also, not to forget, Chennai is the best place for you to hog on South Indian cuisine which is famous around the world. Chennai can easily be termed as the solitary city still preserving the culture, heritage, arts, and culinary traditions of South India. Being alongside the Bay of Bengal, Chennai is also considered to be the most important sea hub for transport and trade in the Southern part of India. Let’s have a look at all the prominent places you can visit in Chennai during your trip or vacation here. This list will surely help you explore Chennai in a much better way!
Top Places to Visit in Chennai
- Marina Beach
Stretching a distance of 13 kilometers across the Bay of Bengal, Marina Beach is a natural urban beach that ranks first in the world in regards to the longest urban beach. Another noteworthy number game for Marina Beach is that it is visited by a minimum of 30,000 visitors per day making it the most visited beach in India. Marina Beach although located in the main city of Chennai has a superb and enthralling view. The white sand of the beach seems to go beyond boundaries for infinity. The scenic beauty of Marina Beach is something to behold and capture in your memory for years to come. Being the number one tourist spot in Chennai, Marina Beach has several merry-go-rounds and plenty of shops selling souvenirs. Walking on this white sand in the evening with your group of friends or your loved one while munching on a hot plate of murukku or crispy Sundal is an altogether different feel. The sunset is really a mesmerizing sight to watch from Marina Beach.
- Valluvar Kottam
Built to honor the famous Tamil poet and saint Thiruvalluvar, the monument of Valluvar Kottam is erected, which is even a temple that looks like a chariot. This architectural marvel was built in the year 1970 by Kalaignar M. Karunanidhi. Thiruvalluvar is renowned for his Thirukkurals, the most famed work of Tamil Literature. The best time to visit this monument is either just at dawn when the sun is about to rise or in the evening times when the sun is setting. It is the most perfect spot to click a few pictures to flaunt in your album of Chennai vacation. Apart from being a tourist spot, Vallivar Kottam is also famous for holding big exhibitions and events. The most common type of exhibition held here is the handloom showcase and sale event. In addition to this Valluvar Kottam is the place where Mother Teresa herself planted a few saplings back in the year 1974.
- Thousand Lights Mosque
Built in the 19th century by the Carnatic Rulers, The Thousand Lights Mosque of Royapettah is considered to be the most elegant mosque in Chennai. To date, this mosque is filled with devotees offering daily prayers and festivals like Muharrum are spaced here on a large scale. The mosque got its name as it is believed that to lighten up the mosque during the night times, a precise thousand wick lamps were needed. It must indeed be a great sight to watch the mosque during those days pictured against the pitch-dark sky. The mosque is structured in a typical Islamic manner with huge domes and minarets and has separate praying spaces for men and women. The shrine placed at the center of the Mosque is of Imam Hossein, the grandson of Prophet Muhammad.
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- Elliot’s Beach
Elliot Beach, also known as Bessie, is a famous beach in Tamil Nadu having the Velankanni Church and the Ashtalakshmi Kovil in its surrounding area. It is considered to be the cleanest beach in Tamil Nadu and due to its proximity to the Church and Temple, it is quite a scenic, calm, and blissful place to be at. During the British Era, this beach was limited only to white people, but such racism doesn’t exist today. A lot of college students, tourists, as well as locals enjoy coming to Bessie to have a sunbath, take a stroll, or simply enjoy its beauty. Alongside Elliot Beach, there are various restaurants of different cuisines for everyone to relish. While at Elliot’s Beach don’t forget to visit the ancient monuments spaced here.
- Dakshinachitra
Dakshinachitra Museum is a live museum that speaks about the South Indian Culture and explains them to everyone in a simple language. It showcases architecture works, arts, crafts, as well as the lifestyle of the South Indian states. Inaugurated in the year 1996 the Dakshinachitra Museum has roughly 4000 artifacts and over lakh pictures depicting Southern India. This museum is surely a vast ocean of knowledge. The whole museum is expressed in the form of a south Indian village and it consists of 18 houses, which represent 18 different cultures. These houses are built by professional artisans. An excellent place to learn more about South India.
- Ashtalakshmi Temple
Based near Besant Beach, the Ashtalakshmi Temple is dedicated to the Goddess of Wealth and Knowledge. People from far and wide come here to offer their devotion and seek blessings in return. There is an aura of serenity felt in the temple due to the constant echo sound of the waves of the Bay of Bengal. The temple is built in an extremely grand way and it is assumed that a total of 7 million INR was spent just to renovate the temple. Apart from this, a Hindu Ritual named Jeernotharana Ashtabandana Mahakumbhabhishekam performed here cost an amount of nearly 1.6 million INR.
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- Government Museum
The Government Museum of Chennai is the second oldest museum in India ranking below the Indian Museum of Kolkata. This museum was built in the year 1851. The style of architecture used in building this museum is the Indo – Saracenic style and it majorly displays the works of Raja Ravi Verma.
- Mylapore
Mylapore is a cultural neighborhood in Chennai that dates back to 1500 years before Madras or Chennai was even named. It exhibits a lot of temples, churches, and historical monuments right from that period of time. Developing with time, Mylapore now also has shopping malls, tall buildings, and other urban attractions which makes it the perfect blend of traditional and urban culture in the city. Before the urbanization took place, Mylapore was home to a huge number of peacocks and thus was called Thirumayilai by the locals. This vicinity has been mentioned in numerous pieces of literature from the ancient ages. Honestly, for Chennai, Mylapore is the nerve of the city.
- Guindy National Park
Guindy National Park covers most of the green area available in Chennai by all means. Still, it is the 8th smallest national park in India, but the land is blessed with thick forests, pastured lands, lakes, and other water bodies. Tourists enjoy the activity of boating here while enjoying the flora and fauna of the park. As the Guindy National Park has various species of wildlife living in their natural habitat, it has a lot of visitors around the year.
- Sri Parthasarathy Temple
Sri Parthasarathy Temple is an architectural marvel more than 1000 years old in Chennai. This temple is dedicated to all the incarnations of Lord Vishnu and thus the devotees from the Vaishanvite sect come to seek blessings of the Lord on a large scale here. This Temple on a religious note is considered to be a part of the 108 holy shrines, also called Divya Deshams dedicated to Lord Vishnu around the world. The five major shrines inside the temple are Narasimha, Rama, Gajendra Varadraja, Ranganatha, and Krishna. The architecture of this temple is based on the Dravidian Style of design which was famous during the 8th century. A lot of stories are related to this temple which is actually very fascinating to hear.
- Kapaleeswarar Temple
The Kapaleeswarar Temple is the temple in Mylapore dedicated to Lord Shiva. It was originally built by the Pallava Empire, but the Portuguese Explorers destroyed most part of the temple, and thus the Vijaynagar Kings rebuilt the temple in the 16th century. The Dravidian and Vijayanagara style of architecture can be seen in the making of this temple. A sacred tank is observed on the western end of this temple. Although there are various legends behind this temple, no one has still been able to finalize which one holds the greater value. An annual festival called Brahmotsav is held in this temple to remember the 63 Tamil Shaivite Saint Poets Nayaars.
- Connemara Public Library
Inaugurated in the year 1896, the Connemara Public Library is a paradise for readers and collectors of books, newspapers, periodicals, and all other types of print media texts. It is a place where you will for sure find any text that you are looking out for. Being one of the four National Depository Libraries of India, it receives copies of all books and articles published in India. You can get publications to read here that even a century-old are.
- Royapuram Fishing Harbor
The most popular fishing grounds of Chennai which are under the Chennai Port Trust, the Royapuram Fishing Harbor is the busiest fishing harbor you can ever imagine. You will observe full-length 45 feet boats to the smallest of catamarans at this harbor thus showing its diversity. On an average 200 tonnes of fish are sold on a daily basis in this harbor. A systematic auction hall is the highlight of this harbor where it gets a daily footfall of not less than 30,000 people. This harbor is so famous, that 30% of the fish sold is retailed in other states like Kerala and Karnataka.
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- Semmozhi Poonga
Semmozhi Poonga is the first botanical garden in Chennai which was open to the public in the year 2010. It displays over 500 varieties of plants, which include herbal as well as medical shrubs too. There are 8 different zones in the park based on a thematic structure. It is one of the growing public and tourists landmarks of Chennai.
- Marundeeswarar Temple
The Marundeeswarar Temple of Chennai is a place of worship of Lord Shiva in the form of Marundeeswar, also called Aushadeeswarar, the God of Medicines. The temple is the perfect example of the Dravidian style of architecture and design. It was built in the 7th century by Nayanars and was later expanded in the 11th century by the Chola Dynasty. The blessing here is in the form of ash, water, and milk and is said to cure any ailment of the devotee drinking it. The vibes around the temple can’t be described but have to be experienced at least once in a lifetime.
Conclusion
Chennai, as from the above locations we can assume to be a place of historic importance and of spiritual and religious powers. With time, Chennai is urbanizing and that can be seen in the malls, cafes, clubs, and other places which are getting built up where youngsters spend a gala of a time. The age factor thus really doesn’t make much of a difference while you are touring Chennai. This city boasts of giving something or the other to each and every tourist who comes to explore Chennai. Once you are in Chennai, we also advise you to try the mouthwatering South Indian cuisine without which your trip will be considered incomplete. Happy Vacations and Holidays in Chennai! Visit our website Chiku Cab
